Most of us were taught: “Just clip the leash to the collar. That’s what it’s for.” But a veterinary study looking at how much pressure collars put on the neck when dogs pull or get jerked on the leash paints a very different picture — and it has big welfare implications for our pets. As a Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) and Service Dog Coach, I want to break this down in plain language and give you clear, practical takeaways. 🔬 What Did the Researchers Do? Researchers built a “fake dog neck” (a rigid tube the size of a medium–large dog’s neck) and wrapped it in a pressure sensor. Then they tested several common walking tools, including: - Flat collars - Padded collars - Rolled collar - Lurcher-style collar (wide in the front, narrower behind) - Slip lead - Chain/check collar For each one, they applied three types of leash force to simulate real-life walking: 1. Light pull – dog just leaning into the leash 2. Strong pull – dog really pulling 3. Leash jerk – a quick, sharp tug (like a “correction” or when a dog hits the end of the leash suddenly) They measured: - How much pressure the neck “felt” - Where that pressure landed (front vs sides of the neck) - How much area of the neck the collar actually pressed on No live dogs were used – this was all done on a model, so no one was hurt during testing. 📊 What Did They Find? Short version: When force goes through a collar, the neck gets hit hard. Key findings in simple terms: - All collars produced very high pressure on the neck when the dog pulled or was jerked on the leash. - Some collars, especially rolled collars and narrow designs, created extremely high pressure in a very small area. - Slip leads and chains often had a small contact area, meaning the force was concentrated more intensely. - Pressure was often focused at the front of the neck – right where the throat, thyroid gland, big blood vessels, and important nerves are. - Even the “best” collars in the study (wider, padded, more surface area) still produced pressure levels considered high enough to potentially cause tissue damage when force was applied.